Saturday

The Mercyhurst College women's hockey team is young in age, not in experience.

There is a difference. The Lakers plan to prove that in the NCAA Division I Tournament.

Fourteen of the team's 22 players were part of the Lakers' run to the 2008-09 championship game. They shared in the joy of the program's first NCAA playoff win, the adrenaline rush and nerves of its first Frozen Four appearance and win and the disappointment of losing in its first national title game.

These Lakers remember it all. They only want to change the ending.

"I don't think it's about how many years you've been on a team. It's about what you learn," said Johanna Malmstrom, the Lakers' lone senior and one of seven upperclassmen.

As soon as every player enters the program, coach Michael Sisti said, they realize, "Our goals are lofty."

The Lakers expect to win every game. They have a 281-77-26 record since the program began in 1999. The Lakers expect to win every conference championship. They have won all eight College Hockey America championships in the conference's eight-year history and nine straight conference titles overall.

As each season progresses, the Lakers feel pressure. This team has certainly has felt it at times.

They had to consistently win despite losing standouts Meghan Agosta to the Canadian Olympic team and Valerie Chouinard and Hayley McMeekin to graduation.

The pressure remains high entering the Lakers' NCAA quarterfinal matchup with Boston University today at 2 p.m. at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.

The Lakers are the tournament's No. 1 seed for the first time.

"All the pressure is sitting on Mercyhurst," said Wayne State coach Jim Fetter, Sisti's assistant from 2000-03. "You talk to any coach, that's the toughest game to win because you're expected to win. You're expected to be in the Frozen Four."

The Lakers expect to win national titles, too. So far, that goal has eluded them.

"They're willing to pay the price to get the job done," Sisti said. "They know how tough it is to do what we're trying to do. That's what they're starting to see and coming together as a team."

After losing to Wisconsin in the 2009 title game, the Lakers believe they can achieve their ultimate goal.

Unlike last year, the Lakers won't be surprised by anything they accomplish in the postseason. If they return to the Frozen Four, the Lakers will know they belong with the nation's elite teams.

"We're going to go in there thinking, 'Hey, we can do this. We can win this. We deserve to be there,' " junior Jesse Scanzano said.

"We're going to do anything it takes to get that," sophomore goaltender Hillary Pattenden said. "We're all looking for a better outcome."

BU coach Brian Durocher isn't fooled by the Lakers' youth.

"They've been there. They are led by great people," said Durocher, who compared the Lakers to the Gonzaga University men's basketball team -- a small-school program "that's more than a one-year wonder."

To be successful in this tournament, the Lakers are focused on winning. There is no room for excuses.

"They have big expectations," Sisti said. "They know they have to earn them and work hard for them."

But this time of the season should be fun, too.

"Now's the time when you just let it all hang out and let the chips fall where they fall," Sisti said.

It will be fun. It will be exciting. The Lakers just won't feel overwhelmed.

"It's a great experience," Malmstrom said. "From being in that (tournament) last year, this year we know what to expect. Now we don't have to be nervous. We know what we have to do to get there."

VICTOR FERNANDES can be reached at 870-1716 or by e-mail.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.